


happiness

by perpetually_exhausted_mess



Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare, The Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Clary Fray & Alec Lightwood Friendship, Coming Out, Detective Alec Lightwood, Lawyer Magnus Bane, M/M, Oblivious Jace Wayland, Raphael Santiago Is So Done, Relationship Reveal, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-08
Updated: 2020-05-08
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:49:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24077008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/perpetually_exhausted_mess/pseuds/perpetually_exhausted_mess
Summary: Detective Alec Lightwood is finally smiling and his partner Clary just wants to know why.
Relationships: Clary Fray & Alec Lightwood, Clary Fray/Jace Wayland, Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood
Comments: 49
Kudos: 632
Collections: Malace 101, Malec Favorites, Malec best





	happiness

Detective Alec Lightwood was, in a word, stoic. Clary had to admit that she was intimidated by him, not only by his reputation as one of the most successful detectives in their precinct, but by his seriousness and objectivity.

Any outsider might think that he was just professional, keeping his work and personal lives separate, but although he would crack a smile at his siblings’ jokes, in the privacy of his inner circle he was still much the same. Emotionless. Unexpressive. Even during weekly sibling game nights, to which Clary was a frequent guest along with Izzy’s boyfriend Simon, he was the same. He hadn’t ever even brought a date.

She wasn’t even sure if he had any friends outside of his work or his siblings, which was why it was all the more surprising to see him smiling at his phone one afternoon as they prepared to leave for lunch. She stared for a moment, unused to that expression sitting on his pale face. It made him look younger, softer. 

Typically, Jace had to go and ruin it.

“Hot new lady-friend?” He grins, attempting to grab the phone from his brother.

His smile instantly vanishes.

“No.”

“C’mon, you never tell me anything,” Jace pouts.

Alec slips his phone back into his pocket, heading out the door without another word, leaving the others scrambling to follow him.

Working in the same precinct as your boyfriend and both of his siblings could be tough at times, but they made it work. Izzy was a medical examiner working downstairs, and was mostly exempt from the chaos, while she, Jace and Alec were detectives, spending about half of their typical day at their desks in the bullpen, and the other half on cases.

Clary had only just recently been promoted to detective, while the Lightwoods had been on the force for years, along with their parents before them. Alec was looking to take the Sargent’s exam the following year, and she was sure he would pass with flying colours.

Unfortunately, the disparity in their experience meant that she was often partnered with the imperturbable detective, which made for a lot of silent drives.

He was a great partner, good at what he did and considerate to boot, helping her to learn the ropes, taking the lead on tougher cases while still allowing her to be independent. Other detectives tended to either dumb things down to the point of condescension or reference things she couldn’t possibly hope to understand, but he had a natural affinity for teaching. He made her feel needed, like she was part of a well-oiled machine.

* * *

The wasn’t something that happened overnight, it was a gradual change, maybe to a stranger barely noticeable, but to Clary it was glaringly obvious. Alec was happier.

It started with the smiling, which she began to notice again and again. She caught him talking on the phone in the break room, smiling and gesturing wildly with his hands, although he quickly sobered, clamming up as soon as he saw her. He wished her good morning as she passed by his desk, not even mentioning the fact that she was three minutes late, a cardinal sin in his book. He was even on time once, as opposed to his standard ten minutes early, causing Raj to give a low whistle.

“How good was she?” he laughs, and Alec’s expression sours. He walks to his desk without a word.

Jace glances at her questioningly and she shrugs. She didn’t pretend to understand her partner’s mind.

It was hard to explain, but he just had more lift to his step, a more comfortable hold to his shoulders, striding like he had something to look forward to. Jace teased him at every opportunity, as did Raj, but surprisingly, both Izzy and Lydia, Alec’s closest friend in the precinct, stayed silent on the matter.

Things came to a head a few months after the first smiling incident, as they called it, when Jace asked Alec to switch shifts with him so he and Clary could go on a date. This was a fairly regular occurrence, him asking to swap shifts the day before their planned date, and Alec had never said no before. Until now.

“Alec come on, I’ll take your Thursday evening, we’ve got reservations at that new Italian place and-”

“I told you, unless you plan on asking me at least a week before, as is standard procedure, I’m not taking your shifts anymore.” 

Jace groans loudly. “It’s not like you have anything better to do, when do you ever have plans that don’t involve us?”

“Since-” Alec cuts himself off. “Since always,” he tries to correct himself, but the damage was done. Jace’s eyes were already widening.

“Code red code red everyone, Alexander Gideon Lightwood has a date! For the first time this century it seems, Alec is off the market.” He leaps up, raising his hand for a high five, which is pointedly ignored. “I’m proud of you Alec, finally getting a life. Bring her to game night!”

At this point half of the bullpen is watching them, amused at Jace’s gleeful antics, while a few looked like they felt sorry for Alec.

The aforementioned brother stood up, grabbing his jacket from behind his chair, preparing to leave.

“You’re being ridiculous, I have a case to work on. Lydia?” He stalked out of the precinct, his partner on that particular case following closely behind.

“I don’t understand him,” Jace grumbles, sliding his chair towards her desk. “He never dates, won’t even give girls the time of day, and now that he is, he won’t even tell me anything about it. He’s my brother and I don’t even know what his type is.”

Smiling, she says, “Maybe you just haven’t been paying enough attention, _detective_.”

Groaning, he swipes her coffee from her desk to take a few big gulps.

“Every time he lets me drag him to a bar, I try to set him up with someone, I’ve gotten him the phone numbers of half the cute girls in Brooklyn, and he has the audacity to find himself a girlfriend and not tell me about it?”

“Cute girls, huh?” she teases.

“Cute for him, you know what I mean. Anyway, he knows the names and social security numbers of every girl I’ve ever hooked up with, I told him about you within ten minutes of you saying yes to a date, honestly he probably knows more about our sex life than I do because I tell him everything and his brain is a machine.”

She raises her eyebrows at that, but he flaps his hand at her to let him continue. It doesn’t surprise her, anyway.

“You’ll tell me if you see anything suspicious though, right? Any secretive coffee dates, under-the-radar handholding with Lydia, because I _still_ haven’t ruled her out. You know they have sleepovers? And what she calls ‘friend dates’ where they just drink and bitch about people together?”

“I’m pretty sure he and Lydia are just friends; you know that just as well as I do.”

Grumbling, he pushes his chair back to his own desk, taking her coffee with him.

“Just keep an eye out, will you?”

* * *

She keeps an eye out.

She _notices_.

A couple weeks later, she sees his annoyed frown as their captain assigns them a stakeout, and she pays careful attention as they leave the car. They climb up to a roof with a good view, and he excuses himself to find a bathroom. He doesn’t go to the bathroom. She quietly follows him, hearing him take his phone out to begin a call.

“Hey, babe.”

The words are said so adoringly that she does a double take. Never has she heard her partner sound so besotted, so clearly in love with the person on the other end of the line.

“Really sorry, I won’t be able to make tonight, I’ve got a stakeout.” He halts, listening to the other person. “The reservation is a pain, does Cat like Peruvian food?” She’s never heard his voice sound so soft, so loving. “I’m sorry I’ve got to go, see you for lunch tomorrow?”

She creeps closer, trying to hear even a hint of the person on the phone.

“Bye, I love you.”

Her eyes were widening at that declaration, but she stopped as she heard the reply. A barely audible, but certainly, an “I love you too,”.

But it wasn’t the words which surprised her, it was who said them. It wasn’t a girl speaking, as she had assumed.

It was a man. 

* * *

After her realisation about Alec’s ‘girlfriend’, she kept her thoughts to herself, choosing not to share that information with Jace but to see what she could learn on her own. She was a detective, after all.

At first, she had thought the very idea was ludicrous; Alec, gay? Hulking fitness-obsessed police detective Alec? Then she realised that uh, _no_ , not fitting stereotypes absolutely did not mean that he couldn’t be gay, and she was being pretty ridiculous to even think that in the first place.

And if it was even possible, she paid even more attention to him. She saw his minuscule flinch every time Jace mentioned his ‘girlfriend’, saw that even though neither Lydia nor Izzy joined in with those discussions, when they did, they only used gender neutral pronouns. She caught a couple of glances at his phone as he texted, seeing that the one person he always seemed to be texting was saved under the contact name ‘M’, and nothing more.

She starts to make an effort, too, use gender neutral pronouns, and she catches the confused looks he shoots at her every time. She trusts him with her life, and although she knows that he trusts her with his, she wants him to feel comfortable enough to trust her with this.

* * *

It comes when she and Alec are taking a case, a break in at a law firm about twenty minutes from the precinct. As soon as he catches a glance at the file, he mumbles an _‘are you kidding me’_ that she was fairly sure she wasn’t supposed to hear and insisted that they work the case immediately.

She doesn’t question how he knows the way to the office building without so much as a glance at a map, or how he knows seemingly instinctively the location of the elevators. As she follows him to the reception desk, it becomes even more glaringly obvious that he comes here often.

“Alec?” the receptionist smiles in greeting. “Oh hey honey, are you here to see-”

“Uh, actually no,” he cuts her off hastily, “I’m here about the break in?”

Clary was trying so hard to stop herself from smiling. Of course, Alec was the type to show up at his boyfriend’s work often enough that everyone there recognised him. And now he was desperately trying to make sure that she didn’t find out anything.

“Oh, of course sweetie, you’ll want to see Raphael then. I’m sure you know where his office is?”

“Yes, thank you.”

He goes back to the elevator, as she trails behind him, smiling bemusedly.

“Not a word,” he says, looking at her pointedly, as the door closes.

She laughs, watching in the mirror even as he tries not to smile.

“Am I going to be meeting your special someone?”

“God I hope not,” he mutters, as they head down the corridor. She glances around at the offices and cubicles, smiling at the somewhat organised chaos of folders, files, and personal items.

They turn a corner and stop at an office, Alec rapping sharply on the door twice.

“Come in.”

They enter the small room, only to find it in disarray. Papers, files, books and stationary lie everywhere, and in the midst of it all is a dark-haired man in a sleek suit, who kneels on the ground hunting through a drawer.

“Mr Santiago?”

He turns to Alec, recognition registering in his eyes. “Oh it's you again. You just missed him, he’s in court today.” Alec winced.

“I’m not here to see him, I-”

“Well that’s a shocker isn’t it?” He turns to Clary, shaking his head. “At least a couple times a week, this guy comes in, stealing my best friend away from me. The audacity! And when he isn’t here, it’s all ‘oh Raphael, what should I get Magnus?’, ‘oh Raphael, where should I take Magnus for our seven-month anniversary?’, as if that’s even a real thing.” He shakes his head, standing up and brushing lint off his sharply pressed trousers. “And Magnus is just as whipped, it’s absolutely revolting.”

He raises his eyes to meet Alec’s, looking entirely unimpressed.

“My, uh, _friend_ aside, we’re-”

“You can say boyfriend, it’s not like you’re exactly subtle.”

His head whips around to her, eyes wide.

“You, he’s not, I’m-” he splutters.

“I’ve known for a while. But seven months, Lightwood? That’s low.”

Raphael watches them, amused.

“You’re coming to family dinner at Ragnor’s on Friday, right?”

“Of course I’m going, but none of this is what we’re supposed to be talking about, your office literally got broken into last night, so can we focus on that now, please?”

* * *

“Clary, can you do me a favour?” Alec sidles into the break room where she was making coffee.

“Depends, what is it?”

“Remember how I’ve swapped shifts with Jace so you can go on dates about fifty times?” She raises an eyebrow at his less than stellar opening, and he sighs. He glances around furtively, lowering his voice so no one else could hear. “It’s my boyfriend’s birthday next Tuesday ok? Please can you swap shifts with me?”

Her face softens as she saw the vulnerability in his eyes. Even in the weeks since she revealed what she knew, she hadn’t heard him utter the word ‘boyfriend’ once, even when it was just the two of them.

“Alec, of course.” He looks like a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders and thanked her.

“Why don’t you bring him to game night this week? You go to ‘family dinners’ with his friends, hell, Jace brought me after we’d been together a few days.  
  


“It’s different.”

“Why is it so different? Izzy’s figured it out by now I’m sure, and although Jace is kind of an idiot he’s not going to have a problem with it. I’m sure they’d love to meet him, and so would I. _Seven months_ , Alec.”

“Eight now, actually.”

She glares at him and he sighs heavily.

“I’ll consider it, ok? I gotta talk to him first.”

* * *

**Alec [09:34 PM]** : bringing someone to game night

 **Alec [09:34 PM]** : don’t make it weird

**Jace [09:35 PM]** : JNSKERJNFKAJNKJECNAERK

**Alec [09:35 PM]** : that would be making it weird 

**Jace [09:36 PM]** : FINNALLY

 **Jace [09:36 PM]** : SO EXICTED TO MEET HER

**Izzy [09:38 PM]** : Yay! Can’t wait to meet them, I’m sure it’ll go great :)

**Clary [09:40 PM]** : looking forward to it !!

**Simon [09:54 PM]** : Alec has a girlfriend?

* * *

“Ten bucks says he bails.”

“You’re on.” Clary sticks out her hand for her boyfriend to shake.

It was Friday evening, the long-awaited game night, and Alec was ten minutes late, which was unheard of for him, but understandable given the circumstances. Izzy was ferrying drinks and snacks from her kitchen to the living room, while Jace, Clary and Simon rifled through the game cupboard.

Finally, and hesitantly, the doorbell was rung.

“I’ll get it,” she says, standing up.

She’s excited to see Alec’s boyfriend, and hopes that her reaction will help somewhat to put him at ease.

She pulls open the door, plastering a smile on her face.

And is instantly floored.

Alec stands behind the door, and beside him is one of the most beautiful men she’s ever seen. With elaborately styled jet-black hair, dramatic eyeliner and honest-to-god glitter, Alec’s boyfriend is, in a word, fabulous.

He stands confidently, an amused smirk playing about his lips, while Alec looks nervous, glancing over his shoulder like he’s preparing to make a break for it.

She grins widely, opening the door so they could step inside.

“You must be the elusive Magnus! Lovely to meet you.”

He smiles warmly.

“You must be Clary; Alexander has told me so much about you.”

She mouths a quick _‘Alexander?’_ at his blushing face, just as Izzy comes out of the kitchen.

“Alec? Oh!” Her eyes widen, and, without skipping a beat, she leaps forward, wrapping the surprised Magnus in a hug, before doing the same to Alec. She shakes her head, still smiling. “Twenty-five years, _hermano_ , and now you finally bring a boy home.” She eyes Magnus appreciatively. “And you have very good taste.”

She ushers them inside, where they remove coats and shoes. Finally, Jace joins them in the corridor.

“Oh hey, are you-” He cuts off. She sees Alec tense as his brother’s eyes widen in confusion. “I thought you were bringing your girlfriend?”

Magnus smiles comfortingly, stepping to the side to allow Alec to face his brother.

He speaks for the first time.

“Jace, this is Magnus, my,” he hesitates, then steels himself. “My boyfriend.”

Jace frowns, his eyes dropping to see where Alec’s hand has grasped onto Magnus’s for comfort, and something like realisation settles in his eyes.

“Wait, boyfriend? You’re gay?”

His shoulders are stiff as he nods, eyes fixed on the blond. The tension in the room is thick, no one daring to move a muscle.

Jace continues to stare for a moment, before his expression morphs into a grin.

“All this time, you let me set you up with chicks, while I should have been setting you up with guys?”

The tension finally breaks, as Magnus and Izzy chuckle. Jace steps forward to envelop Magnus in a hug.

“So you’re the guy who’s got Grumpy over there smiling all the time. Glad to finally meet you.” Magnus smiles in response, as Jace leads the way to the living room.

“Hope you’re ready to be destroyed in Scrabble,” he calls over his shoulder, causing them all to smile.

They all head into the room to play, but not before Clary catches the look shared between Magnus and Alec, a look that revealed so much love and support. It was a look that said, _I’m here with you, I’ve got your back. I’m proud of you._ She felt like she was imposing, even just observing them, so she tore her eyes away, heading into the living room.

“Wait, Alec has a boyfriend?” Simon’s confused question was met with laughs and smiles, before they finally started the game.

* * *

Magnus, as it turned out, was very very good at Scrabble. He destroyed them without even trying, and while normally Clary might be annoyed at that, it was impossible not to be happy that night. Not while they could see the radiance and affection blooming in Alec’s eyes every time he thought no one was looking.

Happiness was a good look on him.

**Author's Note:**

> find me on tumblr @perpetually-exhausted-mess 
> 
> hope you enjoyed pls comment and kudos to make me happy :)
> 
> quarantine is boring so if any other awkward ao3 addicts with nothing better to do wanna hit me up and be friends that would be cool


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